Literature 10

Ancient Roman Literature

This course is a companion to the Roman history course, introducing the student to the important works of Roman literature, as well as to the use of figures of Roman history and literature by great writers of later times. The texts of antiquity are studied for their universal appeal to the human experience, as well as for their influence upon the great thinkers and development of the West. The Roman epics, plays, and philosophy are referenced throughout the literary and intellectual works of Western thinkers to this day. Shakespeare is also studied in this course for his inimitable analysis of the great personalities of Rome.

Students will become familiar with the main examples of Roman literature and their use by later writers, notably Shakespeare; identify and examine the inter-relationship between the Greek epic (the Iliad and the Odyssey), and the Roman epic (the Aeneid); identify the Roman virtue of pietas and its subsequent transformation in Christianity; further the study and imitation of these genres: epic, tragedy, comedy, and rhetoric. Biography (Plutarch) and autobiography (St. Augustine) will also be considered; learn to interpret and distinguish the fourfold senses of theological writings: the literal, the allegorical, the moral, and the eschatological; and trace the effect of the Greek world on the development of Latin literature, as well as the Greek influence in the works of St. Augustine.

Students taking this course for Kolbe Core (K) credit will have four papers, a mid-term, and final exam each semester. Additionally, core students should expect to have daily reading and minor weekly written assignments or quizzes.